Rotten Tomatoes
Submit search Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Black Zombie

Play trailer 1:56 Poster for Black Zombie Now Playing 1h 30m Documentary Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
100% Tomatometer 33 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
BLACK ZOMBIE digs beneath the blood-soaked spectacle of modern horror to uncover the zombie's buried and unsettling origins. Long before it became associated with flesh-eating ghouls, the zombie was a living metaphor for slavery: not a monster, but the ultimate victim of colonial power. A symbol of stolen agency was recast as an object of fear, while Black spiritual traditions were distorted, sensationalized, and erased. Director Maya Annik Bedward traces the evolution of the zombie from colonial Haiti to contemporary Hollywood, reconsidering iconic films like WHITE ZOMBIE, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW alongside archival footage, vérité scenes, and interviews with cultural historians, artists, and genre legends including Yves-Grégory Francois, Mambo Labelle Déesse, Slash, Tom Savini, and Zandashé Brown. Part cultural reckoning, part horror remix, BLACK ZOMBIE exposes how a figure born from enslavement, spiritual belief, and resistance was transformed into one of pop culture's most profitable monsters.
Now in Theaters Now Playing Buy Tickets

Where to Watch

Black Zombie

Critics Reviews

View More
Peyton Robinson RogerEbert.com 1 day ago
3/4
While modern-day blind spots burden the film, 'Black Zombie’ stays true to its motivation: lifting the cloche on the erasure and exploitation that founded one of horror’s most iconic figures. Go to Full Review Lisa Kennedy New York Times 6 days ago
In the ruins of a sugar plantation, this cultural multi-hyphenate performs a ritual dance, his rich voice beckoning the spirits — and viewers — like a hymn, like a restorative balm. Go to Full Review Dennis Harvey Variety Aug 3, 2026
While “Black Zombie” isn’t quite the genre “greatest hits” parade many viewers may be hoping for, it does provide a thought-provoking perspective -- one that might add some depth to your next experience of undead cinema, however purely escapist. Go to Full Review Brian Farvour The Playlist 6 hrs ago
A
“Black Zombie”...doesn’t ignore Romero’s contributions, nor Hollywood’s as a whole. Rather, this incredible doc takes a look at where “The Last of Us” and “The Walking Dead” owe a debt of thanks, and the answer is as unlikely as it is fascinating. Go to Full Review Tyler Thier In Review Online 1 day ago
Bedward’s [film is a] confident excavation of racist visual culture, and appreciation for the origins it continues to zombify. Go to Full Review DarkSkyLady DarkSkyLady Reviews 4 days ago
Black Zombie shows the inescapable quality of the zombie as the fear of the "other," whether it’s harm at the hands of one or becoming one, and perhaps the zombie remains because prejudice and racism do. Go to Full Review Read all reviews
Black Zombie

My Rating

Read More Read Less WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW POST RATING

Cast & Crew

View All

Maya Annik Bedward

Director

Yves-Grégory Francois

Self

Tananarive Due

Self

Mambo Labelle Déese Botanica

Self

Slash

Self

Tom Savini

Self
View All

Black Zombie

Black Zombie: Trailer 1 Black Zombie: Trailer 1 1:56 Now Playing View more videos
View All

Black Zombie

Black Zombie (2026) Black Zombie (2026) Black Zombie (2026) Black Zombie (2026) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis BLACK ZOMBIE digs beneath the blood-soaked spectacle of modern horror to uncover the zombie's buried and unsettling origins. Long before it became associated with flesh-eating ghouls, the zombie was a living metaphor for slavery: not a monster, but the ultimate victim of colonial power. A symbol of stolen agency was recast as an object of fear, while Black spiritual traditions were distorted, sensationalized, and erased. Director Maya Annik Bedward traces the evolution of the zombie from colonial Haiti to contemporary Hollywood, reconsidering iconic films like WHITE ZOMBIE, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW alongside archival footage, vérité scenes, and interviews with cultural historians, artists, and genre legends including Yves-Grégory Francois, Mambo Labelle Déesse, Slash, Tom Savini, and Zandashé Brown. Part cultural reckoning, part horror remix, BLACK ZOMBIE exposes how a figure born from enslavement, spiritual belief, and resistance was transformed into one of pop culture's most profitable monsters.
Director
Maya Annik Bedward
Producer
Maya Annik Bedward, Hannah Donegan, Kate Fraser
Screenwriter
Maya Annik Bedward
Distributor
Kino Lorber
Production Co
Raven Banner Entertainment
Genre
Documentary, Horror
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 11, 2026, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 6, 2026
Box Office (Gross USA)
$9.9K
Runtime
1h 30m
Join The Newsletter Join The Newsletter Cookie Settings